| Description: | M82 is the prototypical starburst galaxy and its close proximity make it an ideal target for study. The central kpc region of this galaxy is heavily obscured containing large quantities of gas and dust. These large quantities of gas and dust are the fuel for the ongoing star-formation in the region which can be seen to manifest itself in the numerous >50 compact radio sources which have been detected. These sources are a mixture of radio supernovae, supernova remnants and HII regions all of which can be spatially resolved by radio studies allowing both their structure, and by long term monitoring their structural evolution to be studied. In this talk I will give an overview of our current understanding of the central M82 starburst, including the recent discovery of a new, as yet unexplained, radio transient source. |
